Suspicions
”I appreciate this Sonya, thank you…” Sonya Jones, the wife of Alex and the business administrator of Wolfslair INC stood across the table from Austin, a blonde haired woman with a determined stare and bright blue eyes, a woman who was intimidating and fit in her own right and could be seen in the gym busting her ass daily. She smiled and gave Austin a small nod before stepping back and folding her arms over her chest. ”It shouldn’t be more than a few days.”
She stayed a silent for a moment, Austin pushed up from the table, stepping back. ”They’ll be safe with us.”
He turned away from her, moving to the back window, looking outside where his son and daughter were playing, playing with Alex and Sonyas children. They were smiling, they were happy. Austin chuckled to himself and gave a small nod. ”I know. Thank you…” He leaned down, grabbing the black gym bag that had sat next to his feet, moving from the kitchen out to the front door when a voice suddenly stopped him.
”I know what you’re doing…”
It was Alex. He had been standing behind the wall, his back against it as Austin moved. He stopped after hearing his voice. A groan after as Alex pushed off the wall. His long hair tied back, his arm looking like it was almost healed. He looked like he had been working out, getting stronger. Austin raised an eyebrow looking him up and down. ”I’m just going on a trip, I’ll be gone a few days, that’s all” Austin said it with such conviction he almost believed it himself.
Almost
Alex though, he had a skill, a skill that allowed him to see through peoples bullshit. No matter how convincing. ”Right, maybe you will be back in a few days, but this trip? I don’t think you’re even leaving the state Aus…”
He moved around Austin, positioning himself between Austin and the front door. Austin gave nothing away, his stoic demeanor unchanged by Alex and his wannabe power play. ”I didn’t realize you were my travel agent.” He scoffed and took a step toward Alex, who stood his ground. ”It would be hard to leave with you i9n the way…”
Alex narrowed his eyes as Austins jaw clenched ”Doing what you’’re thinking of doing, it won’t bring her back…”
Austin swallowed, his eyes stayed locked on Alex, but not even on Alex, looking through Alex, to the door, even passed that. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath in, as he exhaled his eyes opened. ”Alex, I appreciate everything you’ve done. Everything. But you need to move.”
After a few moments Alex slid to the side, Austin stepped forward and got to the door. ”I never thought you’d turn your back on your kids Aus…” Austin stopped, his hand on the doorhandle. Alex shook his head and sighed heavily. ”How long have I known you? How many years?...”
”Over a decade..”
Alex laughed and turned toward Austin. ”Yeah. And I remember seeing you as a punk kid, following his dad around. Trying to be a professional wrestler. Then, you came to Wolfslair.” Alex shrugged as Austin stayed silent, wondering just what the hell he was getting at. ”And you had this, raw talent. Something that had always been there but it just needed to be brought out. And it worked. You became a world champion, you traveled the world…became a man…”
Alex paused and Austin just listened. ”And we were all really proud of you. Then, when we got word your mother died, we all had your back, gave you time. Same with your dad, we all had your back…and then Lisa….”
Alex trailed off, Austins head snapped sideways and for the first time in a long time he showed real emotion. ”Just what the hell is your point?”
Alex shook his head and moved around between Austin and the door again as Austin stepped back. ”All the loss, all that you’ve suffered. You have had people with you. You’re not alone….I just wish you’d see it. You still have your kids. And..Marcus….Mia…they need you…” Austin put his head down, deep in thought as Alex cleared his throat. ”And you can’t be there if you’re behind bars…”
Austin stayed there for a moment, his eyes moving across the floor and slowly up to Alex, for a moment Alex thought he got through to him, through to the six foot six monster. Austin shook his head. ”And what about when you dragged your friend into looking for the guys that killed your brother?”
”Dylan has nothing to do-”
”To do with what?” Austin shook his head and stepped forward, face to face with Alex. ”To do with the fact you were to scared to do what should be done? You lost your brother, he was killed because his friends gave him drugs, and he od’d. You had a chance to take them out, to get revenge, to get justice. And you made the choice to walk away….”
”A choice you should make too…”
Austin shakes his head again and growls. ”I’m not you….I’m not. Your brother died and you took that high road. Good for you. My wife is dead Alex. The one person on this earth who could hold back that fucking monster inside of me, the one person who could calm me down and stop me from snapping is gone and you expect me to let that slide. You expect me to let them get away?” Austin laughed nervously. ”No…”
He pushed past Alex and went to the door, Alex turned and grabbed Austin by the shoulder. ”What would she have wanted?....for you to walk out there and give in to that darkness that you and your father had?...or be a father to her children?”
There were a few moments of silence, Austin then pulled away suddenly opening the door. ”Lisa doesn’t want anything Alex…..” His voice trailed off. ”She’s dead…” He stepped through the door, letting it close behind him.
The bigger they are…
”Things don’t always go to plan. Sometimes people pass your tests with flying colors, when you don’t expect them too. Calvin Harris did that. In a way. See I wanted to test his dedication to coming back to this company. After leaping off of it like a rat from a sinking ship, I needed to make sure he could face someone who, lets face it, has been a face of this company since I walked in…”
Austins deep voice booms, gruff and clearly annoyed.
”But, as far as in the ring, he passed that test. Outside the ring though. Well. I showed him the proper respect, the respect that certain others in this company refuse to show their opponents. I told Calvin Harris, publicly, that he was the better man on that night. And in a moment where he could have shown he has changed, that he is the better version of himself that he tries to convey to us all, he failed. Because all I got from him, was fake respect and an arrogance that wasn’t earned or needed.”
“A tiger can’t change his stripes, rather, a more fitting statement would be a rat can’t change it’s nature.”
“But where does that leave me? This entire change in attitude you all seem to think I’ve undergone with a simple change to my appearance is a novelty isn’t it? I cut my hair, I shaved my beard, I got a few tattoos and suddenly Austin has a “killer attitude”. The truth is, I’ve always been like this. If I face someone and they beat me, I give them respect, but ever single time I’m in the ring my goal is the same.”
“To destroy my opponent.”
“That is what I tried to do to Harris, and as much as I like him, that is what I plan to do to Carter in a few weeks. See, it has already been announced that Carter and I will be going one on one. And, I have to be honest. I don’t know why. See, Carter is not a threat to me, to who I am, my career, anything. He’s a kid who has followed me around with hearts in his eyes for years. Looking at me like I’m some kind of golden god and I never took too much notice. I knew it was there, but I ignored it with a chuckle….but when we face off in the ring, there won’t be any laughing…”
His eyes burn, he stares ahead, there is no humor in his voice and the only emotion is a hint of anger and frustration.
”However, now I’ve looked to the past and then the future let me focus on the present. A match against one of the few men in this company who is, physically at least, my contemporary. Osbourne, the big, bad bodyguard in London Underground. And what a beast of a man he is. Six foot six, built of muscle. Physically he should be a challenge. But, really that is just surface level. See, Osbourne is, capable.”
“That is the best word I can use, capable. He has done the job, but as far as success he has always had someone nxt to hin, pushing him. Taking him to tag team glory. And hey, that is nothing to sniff at, being a tag team champion in the different divisions we had in SCW before they ultimately died is still something to behold. I myself am a former mixed tag team champion with Tempest after all. And I am damn proud of what she and I accomplished.”
“As you should be of what you did with your partners big man.”
“But, this isn’t the tag team division. And only one of us has had the kind of success you reach when you can stand on your own two feet. Only one of us has been to the top of this business and this company. Hell, I’ve done it in other companies too and I did it with style, respect and grace. And now? Well Osbourne, now I’m going to do it with brute force and anger.”
He growls and stands up, to this point he had been calm, sitting with his hands clasped, now he is on his feet, stepping forward with a slow and very deliberate pace to do things on his terms.
”One of the th9ings I have seen and heard for years Osbourne, is the comparisons of London Underground to wolfslair. And I really don’t get it. The two groups are not and have never been the same. See, Wolfslair was a group made of individual greatness. The four names that were key members were all great in their own right and between us we have held three SCW world titles, a mens roulette a mens internet, two womens roulette titles, three bombshells world titles and two mixed tag team titles.”
“Look at that list Osbourne.”
“That is a level of greatness you, nor your London Underground alums will ever reach. But don’t get it twisted here, I’m not shitting on you. See, a team is as good as it’s parts, so Wolfslair should have been great, we were expected to be great. So we became great. We were great because of the sum of our parts. But you? London Underground? That was different entirely.”
“Wolfslair succeeded because of our skill”
“London Underground succeeded despite none of it. Succeeding and overcoming the added nsum of its parts not coming together in the same way. But now you want to stand all alone. You want to stand on your own two feet and go at it one on one with me and while I find that admirable and worthy of respect I also have to help you see the truth. That alone, you’re not the man you want to be. Alone you’re not the champion you want to be. So, at climax control…I’m going to do you a favor Osbourne…and in the process get a win that, if I’m honest I desperately need…”
